Today, most people's computer files (e.g., documents, photos, songs, movies, etc.) and other items (e.g., calendar events, emails, tasks, etc.) exist on one or more personal physical devices (e.g., laptops, desktops, PDAs, mobile phones, etc.). This hinders the management and production of information in a number of ways. For example, access to files is typically not ubiquitous across multiple physical devices. It is generally difficult for a user to walk into an Internet café or grab a friend's computer and view or edit a draft document that was started on a different computer. File synchronization is also difficult if a user works on the same document on multiple devices. To ensure the most current version of a document is available, a user may have to repeatedly email modified versions of the document to himself, or remember to consistently store a copy of the current version on a portable drive (e.g., a USB drive), which are techniques that are prone to errors. This problem is compounded during collaboration where multiple document versions may have to be managed via email or merged manually. Finally, if hard disks fail or a laptop is stolen, valuable information may be lost if the user lacks the know-how or the discipline to back-up data.
Networked file systems for business enterprises solve some, but not all of these file management problems for corporations and institutions who can afford such systems. Few consumers, however, have the ability or patience to create and maintain a network application for themselves and everyone with whom they wish to collaborate.